Advice On Tight Time Frame For Getting AP

[Waitinggent 2]

Hi,

My fiance has an interview at the Moscow Embassy on February 5th. I am hoping that she can arrive here in the middle of February, and we can get her processed quickly, because she needs to travel back to Russia at the end of April. Here are my questions:

1) any advice on how to get a marriage license very quickly?

2) can we see the civil surgeon for her medical exam before we are married?

3) if the AP is late in processing, can she leave the country and I can send her the AP, or do they check to see if she has left the country on a date prior to when the AP was issued?

4) Is it reasonable to think that we can get the AP by the end of April for a mid February arrival in the USA?

5) Does getting a quick biometric interview affect when the AP is issued, or is that independent of the biometric interview?

Thanks to all who reply!!

[Nik+Heather 121]

You have 6 months to use the visa once it is issued. She can come after her business in April, and have a relaxed marriage and be able to spend some nice, unhurried time with her new husband.

We are finding that there are more delays than we could anticipate before hand to getting AOS filed - We've been married for nearly 6 weeks and still not ready.

If you are determined to have her arrive immediately after visa issuance, then she should:

1. Go to her visa medical with ALL vaccinations complete - or complete them with the panel physician. Then you won't have to muck about with those.

2. Getting the marriage license is no problem. Usually you walk out with it in an hour. It's getting the certified copy of it after you have executed the marriage which can be the problem. When you go in for the license, ask if you can walk it back in and walk out with the certified copy. In Maricopa county, they said yes. I bet they will do it in other counties.

No, she can't leave the country before it's approved. They check these things.

I am not sure if they will process your AP same day for a planned trip like you're talking about, but the way to do it is to get an infopass appointment and ask for expedited AP. However, usually you have to prove that it's an emergency - death certificates, or notes from doctors relating that someone's relations are deathly ill.

Also, I wouldn't think you'd want to miss her biometrics appointment - what if that goes off while she's gone?

[rahulv 4]

I would agree with Nik+Heather and add that she should come after her business in April in Moscow is over. There are too many tight situations here and you would need a relaxed and composed mind to file a good AOS application instead of a hurried one and it's a process which requires a sufficient amount of time with relaxed frame of mind. Also each case becomes different from time to time and finding solutions take time as well. Missing information, RFE's could delay the process even further.

It took us about 4 - 6 weeks to gather information, mostly understand the forms and the information pertaining to our case. It takes time to get marriage licence, then marriage certificate etc.

Read the AOS guide on VJ and see what it would take to file that application. She may/may not get an AP before April. And she should not leave the country before AP is issued.

[Waitinggent 2]

I would agree with the advice, except I wasn't clear. She will need to stay in Russia from May until Mid September, so the option of waiting until May or June is not an option. We didn't expect to get approval and an interview so soon. The CSC says 5 months but we flew through in 2 months and the case was in Moscow within a few days. We didn't expect a visa dated before March 15 which would have given her until at least September 15th to arrive. And the email I received from Moscow says that they will not change interview dates except in "extreme emergencies". So I am not in an ideal situation, unless Moscow is more flexible than their email appears. My approval from CSC from the I-129f was also only good until March 1st. If you have any thoughts on getting a change in my approval date from CSC and a postpone of my Moscow interview date, I will certainly listen. But I would like to get all my previous questions answered as I may not have many options.

[Brother Hesekiel 2,235]

She will need to stay in Russia from May until Mid September . . .

Well, for her immigration case, she will need to be in the US.

Looks like you'll have to decide which "need to" is more important. I do understand the "need to" assumption if your fiancee is one of the most gifted heart surgeons in Russia and has to perform an emergency operation on her mother or father, but even that doesn't take 14 weeks and isn't really a "need to" case but a choice, albeit an understandable one.

The only thing we need is to breath and to nourish our bodies. Everything else is optional and based on decisions we make voluntarily after giving consideration to the circumstances.

[Krikit 1,164]

1) any advice on how to get a marriage license very quickly?

- The policy for obtaining the license is unique to each county of each State. Check the official site of your county for their policy. If you marry at the courthouse you can receive the certificate immediately following the ceremony.

2) can we see the civil surgeon for her medical exam before we are married?

- Sorry, I have no helpful information on this.

3) if the AP is late in processing, can she leave the country and I can send her the AP, or do they check to see if she has left the country on a date prior to when the AP was issued?

- AP must be approved prior to departure. CBP FAQ - Advance Parole

4) Is it reasonable to think that we can get the AP by the end of April for a mid February arrival in the USA?

- If you file the application asap, the chances are good that the AP will arrive prior to departure. Some people have received their AP in as little as 3-6 weeks. The average appears to be about 2 months. If it is getting close to the date and you still have not received the AP, make an InfoPass Apppointment and request an expedite. Bring all your documentation and proof of application.

5) Does getting a quick biometric interview affect when the AP is issued, or is that independent of the biometric interview?

- The biometrics appointment is not an interview. It is where you go to get your fingerprints and your picture taken. I received an emergency AP without having been to my biometrics appointment. Since I was leaving the following day, I dropped by the biometrics appointment office and asked if they could take me so I didn't have to reschedule. They did. Most people don't have a problem doing a walk-in when they receive their appointment letter.

I would agree with the advice, except I wasn't clear. She will need to stay in Russia from May until Mid September, so the option of waiting until May or June is not an option. We didn't expect to get approval and an interview so soon. The CSC says 5 months but we flew through in 2 months and the case was in Moscow within a few days. We didn't expect a visa dated before March 15 which would have given her until at least September 15th to arrive. And the email I received from Moscow says that they will not change interview dates except in "extreme emergencies". So I am not in an ideal situation, unless Moscow is more flexible than their email appears. My approval from CSC from the I-129f was also only good until March 1st. If you have any thoughts on getting a change in my approval date from CSC and a postpone of my Moscow interview date, I will certainly listen. But I would like to get all my previous questions answered as I may not have many options.

Wow. Moscow is very strict. I know at other Consulates and Embassies you can ask for a delay in the issuance of the visa. You may want to run that by them.

Good luck. Nothing like living life on the edge, eh? LOL

[Krikit 1,164]

Moving from AOS to Working & Travelling forum.

[Waitinggent 2]

Certainly I understand that she must be in the US at least until she gets her AP, which I will try to expedite with an infopass. I presumed that after that, she could fly in for her interview and then fly back out, and I could then take her the green card when it arrives, or send it to her to re-enter the US. Will there be some issue of her leaving again before the green card is approved. Maybe at this infopass I can also request an interview date for later in September so she will not need to fly back in and out again. Is there a flaw in this plan?

She will need to stay in Russia from May until Mid September . . .

Well, for her immigration case, she will need to be in the US.

Looks like you'll have to decide which "need to" is more important. I do understand the "need to" assumption if your fiancee is one of the most gifted heart surgeons in Russia and has to perform an emergency operation on her mother or father, but even that doesn't take 14 weeks and isn't really a "need to" case but a choice, albeit an understandable one.

The only thing we need is to breath and to nourish our bodies. Everything else is optional and based on decisions we make voluntarily after giving consideration to the circumstances.

[Anh map 2,098]

A thought not about the Advance Parole: How will you demonstrate the bona fides / validity of your marriage at the AOS interview?

Not asking you to tell us about her need to be outside the country, but rather asking how the both of you will present it to the interviewing officer if she's still living outside the country, or recently reentered the US, at the time of the interview? Just be sure this doesn't cause you problems with the AOS.

[Krikit 1,164]

Certainly I understand that she must be in the US at least until she gets her AP, which I will try to expedite with an infopass. I presumed that after that, she could fly in for her interview and then fly back out, and I could then take her the green card when it arrives, or send it to her to re-enter the US. Will there be some issue of her leaving again before the green card is approved. Maybe at this infopass I can also request an interview date for later in September so she will not need to fly back in and out again. Is there a flaw in this plan?

It seems like a workable plan.

Prior to receiving my greencard, I travelled in and out of the country at least 5 times. (Can't remember the exact number now.) One extended trip and the rest were anywhere from 1-3 weeks. My greencard was approved and sent to my home in the US while I was out of the country. (I re-entered using the AP but it would have been easier if my husband had just couriered it to me. Long story short: extended secondary processing, missed flight. ) I was approved without an interview, though, so you will want to take what Anh Map says into consideration.

[Waitinggent 2]

Interesting!!! Excuse my ignorance, Krikit, but I didn't realize you could do this kind of in and out travel without a green card. Can we apply for a second AP before she leaves the USA the first time, or will we have a similar problem with her leaving before the approval date on the second AP? Or probably they won't issue a second AP until the first one has been used. How long does it take to receive a second AP? It is possible that my fiance can come to the USA during the summer for more than 1 visit if she can get an AP quickly enough during her visit. Although she cannot come here long enough in the summer to go through the whole processing, her commitments in Russia do not demand that she be there all the time between May and September. I would definitely like to know more about this. Thanks so much.

And thanks for your reply too Anh. Her leaving for such a lengthy period might create a bad impression, and this is certainly something to consider, but we already have a history of much time spent together and several meetings of many weeks in length each time and we will be meeting again in January. Additionally, I can spend some time in Russia with her while she is gone, so it won't be this enormous separation. I am retired, so I am very free. And now, from what Krikit is saying, she may also make a visit to the USA during this summer, so her time away would not be so lengthy and we can demonstrate our seriousness by traveling back and forth to be together. I won't go into her specific situation, but the interviewers should understand her reasons for being in Russia during this period. I think that they would consider her irresponsible if she did not spend this time in Russia.

Certainly I understand that she must be in the US at least until she gets her AP, which I will try to expedite with an infopass. I presumed that after that, she could fly in for her interview and then fly back out, and I could then take her the green card when it arrives, or send it to her to re-enter the US. Will there be some issue of her leaving again before the green card is approved. Maybe at this infopass I can also request an interview date for later in September so she will not need to fly back in and out again. Is there a flaw in this plan?

It seems like a workable plan.

Prior to receiving my greencard, I travelled in and out of the country at least 5 times. (Can't remember the exact number now.) One extended trip and the rest were anywhere from 1-3 weeks. My greencard was approved and sent to my home in the US while I was out of the country. (I re-entered using the AP but it would have been easier if my husband had just couriered it to me. Long story short: extended secondary processing, missed flight. ) I was approved without an interview, though, so you will want to take what Anh Map says into consideration.

[Krikit 1,164]

There is a checkbox on the form for multiple entries. The AP will be valid for one year. She will receive two copies. She will present both copies to the officer, along with her passport. One copy will be retained at the POE, the other will be stamped and returned.

She will then use the same AP for each subsequent entry. They will continue to stamp and return it to her.